Method for detecting malodor from air conditioner, reproducing malodor and preparing corresponding malodor composition

ABSTRACT

A method is provided that identifies the compounds contributing to a malodor from an air conditioner, reproduces the malodor, and prepares a corresponding malodor composition. Through the analysis method of the present invention, the compounds contributing to the malodor from an air conditioner are identified and quantified. The malodor is reproduced from a combination of the compounds identified by the analysis method of the present invention. The reproduced malodor provides significant data required for development of an apparatus and a method for removing specific odor.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2012-0157956, filed on Dec. 31, 2012 in the KoreanIntellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

(a) Technical Field

The present invention relates to a method for detecting a combination ofcompounds contributing to malodor from an air conditioner, a method forreproducing the malodor and preparing a corresponding malodorcomposition.

(b) Background Art

Clean air is an essential element for the maintaining human health andwell-being. Two important factors that lead to unsatisfactory interiorair quality in an airtight building are the building itself producing asubstantial amount of air pollutants that need to be removed or diluted;and odor generated as a result of human activities.

An air-cooling system lowers interior temperature and optimizes interiorenvironment through air conditioning which changes air temperature,humidity, flow and cleanliness to more favorable conditions.Increasingly, air-cooling systems are being used to improve the standardof living. Although the air-cooling systems have been improvedfunctionally over time, problems remain to be solved in terms ofinterior air quality. In the past, lowering interior temperature wasviewed as one of the most fundamental and important functions of theair-cooling system. However, currently, health-related aspects such asinterior air quality and odor may also be regarded as importantfunctions of air-cooling systems. In particular, complaints regardinginterior air quality include offensive odor such as malodor, foul odor,foot odor, and the like. To solve the odor problem, it may be necessaryto analyze the odor-causing substances and understand the fundamentalcause of the odor.

Fungal and bacterial metabolites have been known to be a main cause ofodor from an air conditioner, however, the type and the amount ofmetabolites produced from the microorganisms may remain unclear.Additionally, since it is unclear specifically what compounds cause theoffensive odor, it may be necessary to understand the type of compoundsthat contribute to the malodor from the air conditioner.

SUMMARY

Numerous complaints are commonly made regarding various offensive odorsfrom an air conditioner (e.g., more than 20 types including musty odor).The present invention discloses a method for identifying the compoundscontributing to malodor from an air conditioner, collectingoffensive-smelling gas from a vehicle, and developing a method forartificially reproducing the malodor.

The present invention provides a method for detecting the compoundscontributing to malodor from an air conditioner from among variousoffensive odors emitted from the air conditioner.

The present invention also provides a method for identifying thecompounds contributing to malodor from an air conditioner from amongvarious offensive odors emitted from the air conditioner andartificially reproducing the malodor using the identified chemicalcompounds. Additionally, the present invention provides a method ofpreparing a corresponding malodor composition from the detected malodor.The malodor composition may also be applicable to any applications wheremalodor is emitted, in addition to the air conditioner.

In an aspect, the present invention provides a malodor composition froman air conditioner including one or more compound selected from a groupconsisting of: ammonia, acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde,isovaleraldehyde, n-valeraldehyde, dimethyl sulfide, toluene, m-xylene,o-xylene, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyric acidand isobutyl alcohol.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a malodor compositionfrom an air conditioner including: ammonia, acetaldehyde,propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde, isovaleraldehyde, n-valeraldehyde,dimethyl sulfide, toluene, m-xylene, o-xylene, methyl ethyl ketone,methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyric acid and isobutyl alcohol.

In yet another aspect, the present invention provides a method foranalyzing the compounds contributing to malodor from an air conditioner,including the steps of:

(i) collecting a gas emitted from an air conditioner; and

(ii) analyzing the components of the gas.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for preparinga corresponding malodor composition from a detected malodor, includingmixing two or more compounds selected from a group consisting of:ammonia, acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde, isovaleraldehyde,n-valeraldehyde, dimethyl sulfide, toluene, m-xylene, o-xylene, methylethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyric acid and isobutylalcohol.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will now be described in detail with reference to exemplaryembodiments thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawing which isgiven hereinbelow by way of illustration only, and thus are notlimitative of the invention, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is an exemplary flow chart describing a method for analyzing thecompounds contributing to malodor according to an exemplary embodimentof the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It is understood that the term “vehicle” or “vehicular” or other similarterm as used herein is inclusive of motor vehicles in general such aspassenger automobiles including sports utility vehicles (SUV), buses,trucks, various commercial vehicles, watercraft including a variety ofboats and ships, aircraft, and the like, and includes hybrid vehicles,electric vehicles, combustion, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles,hydrogen-powered vehicles and other alternative fuel vehicles (e.g.fuels derived from resources other than petroleum).

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or”includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associatedlisted items.

Unless specifically stated or obvious from context, as used herein, theterm “about” is understood as within a range of normal tolerance in theart, for example within 2 standard deviations of the mean. “About” canbe understood as within 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%,0.1%, 0.05%, or 0.01% of the stated value. Unless otherwise clear fromthe context, all numerical values provided herein are modified by theterm “about.”

Hereinafter, reference will now be made in detail to various exemplaryembodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustratedin the accompanying drawings and described below. While the inventionwill be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments, it will beunderstood that the present description is not intended to limit theinvention to those exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the inventionis intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but alsovarious alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments,which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention asdefined by the accompanying claims.

In an aspect, the present invention provides a malodor composition froman air conditioner including one or more compound selected from a groupconsisting of: ammonia, acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde,isovaleraldehyde, n-valeraldehyde, m-xylene, o-xylene, methyl isobutylketone and isobutyl alcohol. More specifically, the present inventionprovides a malodor composition from an air conditioner including:ammonia, acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde, isovaleraldehyde,n-valeraldehyde, m-xylene, o-xylene, methyl isobutyl ketone and isobutylalcohol.

The malodor composition from an air conditioner may include: about0.015-2 ppm of ammonia; about 0.0015-0.1 ppm of acetaldehyde; about0.0010-0.1 ppm of propionaldehyde; about 0.00067-0.03 ppm ofbutyraldehyde; about 0.0001-0.006 ppm of isovaleraldehyde; about0.00041-0.02 ppm of n-valeraldehyde; about 0.0041-2.7 ppm of m-xylene;about 0.02-2.9 ppm of o-xylene; about 0.009-3 ppm of methyl isobutylketone; and about 0.004-4 ppm of isobutyl alcohol.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for analyzingthe compounds contributing to malodor from an air conditioner, includingthe steps of:

(i) collecting a gas emitted from an air conditioner; and

(ii) analyzing the components of the gas.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for analyzingthe compounds contributing to malodor from an air conditioner andreproducing the malodor, including: evaluating offensive odor;collecting a gas emitted from an air conditioner; analyzing thecomponents of the collected gas; classifying the components; reproducingcompositions; performing a multiple test (for at least 5 panelists);selecting the representative composition; and completing thereproduction of the malodor composition.

FIG. 1 is an exemplary flow chart describing the method for analyzingthe compounds contributing to malodor and reproducing the malodor.

The malodor from an air conditioner of the present invention may be froman air conditioner in an environment including building, a vehicle, van,bus, etc. More specifically, the air conditioner may be an airconditioner used in a vehicle, van or bus.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the gas in (ii) mayinclude ammonia, acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde,isovaleraldehyde, n-valeraldehyde, dimethyl sulfide, toluene, m-xylene,o-xylene, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyric acidand isobutyl alcohol. In addition, the concentration of the ammonia,acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde, isovaleraldehyde,n-valeraldehyde, dimethyl sulfide, toluene, m-xylene, o-xylene, methylethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyric acid and isobutylalcohol that contribute to the malodor may be measured. The analysis ofthe components in (ii) may be performed by gas chromatography/massspectrometry (GC/MS), gas chromatography with atomic emission detector(GC/AED), gas chromatography/flame ionization detection/olfactometry(GC/FID/olfactometry) or high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC),but is not necessarily limited thereto.

Representative examples of the analysis method of the present inventionare described hereinbelow. However, the analysis method of the presentinvention is not limited thereto.

Gas Chromatography

In gas-solid chromatography (GSC), an adsorbent solid powder may be usedas the stationary phase. In addition, in gas-liquid chromatography(GLC), a liquid stationary phase coated on a solid support may be used.

A carrier gas maintained at a constant flow rate may be supplied from asample injection device into a separation column via a pretreatmentapparatus and discharged after passing through a detector. Thepretreatment apparatus, the sample injection device, the column and thedetector may be maintained at predetermined temperatures.

When a gas or liquid is introduced into the sample injection device, thegas may be carried into the column by the carrier gas and the liquid maybe carried into the column by the carrier gas after being heated andevaporated. The components of the sample may be separated in theseparation column based on difference in absorption or solubility andmay sequentially pass through a mass analyzer disposed at the outlet ofthe separation column.

The time between the injection of the sample into the separation columnuntil a peak occurrence as a result of detection of a specific componentincluded therein may be called retention time, and the retention timemultiplied by the flow rate of the carrier gas is called retentionvolume. Qualitative analysis may be performed on the process since thevalues of the retention time and volume may be different for differentcomponents under given experimental conditions. Furthermore,quantitative analysis may be conducted since the peak area or height maybe related to the amount of the corresponding component present.

Electron ionization is a conventionally used ionization technique.Neutral sample molecules in gas state are bombarded with high-speedelectrons to detach electrons and form molecular ions (cations, M⁺). Theminimum energy required to produce the molecular ion (M+) from theneutral molecule (M) may be called ionization energy (IE). Theionization energy of an organic compound is about 8-12 eV (800-1200kJ/mol⁻¹).M+e ⁻→M⁺+2e ⁻

Among the produced molecular ions, those with high internal energy maybe fragmented to form fragment ions. To prevent ion formation as aresult of reaction between the produced ion and the neutral molecule,the pressure inside the ionization source should be maintained at 10⁻⁵torr or lower.

Electron beams emitted from a filament may be accelerated to 70 eV toobtain standard mass spectrums since they provide high ionizationefficiency with little change in mass spectrum. The mass spectrum is therecording of the mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) of the molecular ions andthe fragment ions. The mass spectrum of the unknown sample may becompared with the stored standard mass spectrums to identify thesubstance.

Electric fields and magnetic fields may be utilized alone or incombination to separate the ions according to their mass-to-chargeratio. A sector field analyzer, a quadruple mass analyzer, an ion trap,a time-of-flight analyzer, and the like may be used as a mass analyzer.

High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC)

The HPLC method may be used to separate nonvolatile substances which maybe difficult to analyze by gas chromatography based on their differencein physicochemical interactions with a stationary phase and a liquidmobile phase. This method is used for qualitative and quantitativeanalysis of aldehydes in the air. Additionally, in HPLC, the targetsubstances may be separated in the separation column based on theirdifference in reactivity with the stationary phase and the mobile phase.

When HPLC is employed for analysis of aldehydes existing in the air, aseparation column in which a nonpolar stationary phase is chemicallybonded to a support may be used. Separation may be achieved depending ondifference in reactivity and solubility for the mobile phase and thestationary phase. In general, the method wherein a column containing anonpolar stationary phase is used and a relatively polar sample eluentis used to separate target substances may be called reversed-phase HPLC.

The material of the tubing in the HPLC method may be stainless steel,polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyether ether ketone (PEEK), glass, ora similar material. Stainless steel may be advantageous due to beingresistant to oxidation and corrosion. However, acid may cause damage andcontamination to the tubing. Thus, when stainless steel or the like isused, the tubing should be washed with distilled water after use.

Often, an HPLC detector, capable of measuring absorption in theUV-visible (ultraviolet) region may be used. When incident light of aparticular wavelength is emitted from a light source on the sample inthe cell of the UV-visible detector, it may be absorbed by the sample.The detector may generate an electrical signal corresponding to thelight absorbance, thus allowing quantitative analysis of the sample.

Hereinafter, the method for detecting the components contributingmalodor according to the present invention is described. However, theapplication of the method is not limited to the described components.

Detection of Ammonia

The concentration of ammonia in the air may be measured as follows.After adding a phenol-sodium nitroprusside solution and a sodiumhypochlorite solution to a sample solution to be analyzed, ammonia maybe analyzed by measuring absorbance of indophenols formed from reactionwith ammonium ion.

Detection of Methyl Mercaptan, Hydrogen Sulfide, Dimethyl Sulfide andDimethyl Disulfide

The concentration of the sulfur compounds in the air may be measured asfollows. After sampling using a sample bag, analysis may be performed bycold trap-capillary GC and cold trap-packed column GC.

Cold Trap-Capillary GC and Cold Trap-Packed Column GC

The sulfur compound sample collected in the sample bag may beconcentrated in a cold trap device (which may be maintained at about−183° C. or below using a refrigerant) and may be analyzed by GC afterdesorption. The measurement procedure may consist of sampling,concentration and sample injection to the separation column. A flamephotometric detector (FPD), a pulsed flame photometric detector (PFPD),an atomic emission detector (AED), a sulfur chemiluminescence detector(SCD), a mass spectrometer (MS), and the like, capable of selectivelydetecting trace amount of sulfur compounds with substantially goodlinearity, may be used.

Electronic Device Cooling Cold Trap-Capillary GC

Sulfur compounds existing in the sample are concentrated at lowtemperature using a cold trap, desorbed at moderate temperature, andtransferred into a syringe pump by the pressure of a carrier gas. Thedesorption occurs at moderate-to-low temperatures (e.g., about 100° C.or lower), not at high temperatures (e.g., above about 100° C.). Theconcentrated sample transferred to the syringe pump is injected into theseparation column and analyzed by the detector. The cold-trapped samplemay also be thermally desorbed and injected into the separation column

Detection of Triethylamine

The concentration of triethylamine in the air may be measured asfollows. After sampling using an impinger and acidic filter paper,analysis may be performed by cold trap-packed column GC andheadspace-capillary column GC.

Detection of Acetaldehyde, Propionaldehyde, Butyraldehyde,n-Valeraldehyde and Isovaleraldehyde

For simultaneous measurement of the concentration of acetaldehyde,propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde, n-valeraldehyde and isovaleraldehydecontributing to offensive odor, 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazone (DNPH)derivatives of the aldehyde compounds may be formed and analyzed by HPLCand GC.

Dinitrophenylhydraziner (DNPH) Derivatization and HPLC/UV

DNPH derivatives formed by reacting carbonyl compounds with2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (DNPH) are extracted with an acetonitrilesolvent and analyzed by HPLC using a UV detector at 360 nm wavelength.

DNPH Derivatization and GC

DNPH derivatives formed by reacting carbonyl compounds with 2,4-DNPH maybe extracted with an acetonitrile solvent and analyzed by GC afterchanging the solvent to ethyl acetate.

HPLC Instrument

The HPLC equipment for sample analysis may include a sample injectiondevice, a pump, a separation column and a detector (UV detector). Theseparation column may be a reversed-phase column (ODS column) to which anonpolar adsorbent is coated allowing control of the mobile phasesolvent according to the mixing ratio. The sample loop of the injectiondevice may be about 20-100 μL depending on the sample concentration.

GC Instruments

A capillary separation column may be used for GC, and a flame ionizationdetector (FID), a nitrogen phosphorus detector (NPD) or a massspectrometer may be used as the detector.

Detection of Styrene

Styrene may be sampled at the site boundary. After sampling using asolid sorbent tube, a canister or a sample bag, analysis may beperformed by cold trap-GC and solid-phase microextraction (SPME)-GC.

Detection of Toluene, Xylene, Methyl Ethyl Ketone, Methyl IsobutylKetone, Butyl Acetate, Styrene and Isobutyl Alcohol

The concentration of toluene, xylene, methyl ethyl ketone, methylisobutyl ketone, butyl acetate, styrene and isobutyl alcohol, which arevolatile compounds contributing to offensive odor, in the air may besimultaneously measured.

Toluene, xylene, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, butylacetate, styrene and isobutyl alcohol may be specified offensive odorsubstances. Sampling may be performed at the site boundary. The samplecollected using a solid sorbent tube may be analyzed by GC after coldtrapping and thermal desorption.

Detection of Propionic Acid, n-Butyric Acid, n-Valeric Acid andIsovaleric Acid

The concentration of the organic acids in the air may be measured asfollows. After sampling using an alkaline-impregnated filter or byalkaline solution absorption, the collected sample may be pretreated bythe headspace method to evaporate the organic acid components. Then,analysis may be carried out by GC.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for preparinga detected malodor composition from an air conditioner, including mixingtwo or more compounds selected from a group consisting of: ammonia,acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde, isovaleraldehyde,n-valeraldehyde, dimethyl sulfide, toluene, m-xylene, o-xylene, methylethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyric acid and isobutylalcohol.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for preparinga detected malodor composition from an air conditioner, including:mixing ammonia, acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde,isovaleraldehyde, n-valeraldehyde, dimethyl sulfide, toluene, m-xylene,o-xylene, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyric acidand isobutyl alcohol.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the method forpreparing a malodor composition from an air conditioner according to thepresent invention may include mixing: about 0.015-2 ppm of ammonia;about 0.0015-0.1 ppm of acetaldehyde; about 0.0010-0.1 ppm ofpropionaldehyde; about 0.00067-0.03 ppm of butyraldehyde; about0.0001-0.006 ppm of isovaleraldehyde; about 0.00041-0.02 ppm ofn-valeraldehyde; about 0.0041-2.7 ppm of m-xylene; about 0.02-2.9 ppm ofo-xylene; about 0.009-3 ppm of methyl isobutyl ketone; and about 0.004-4ppm of isobutyl alcohol.

EXAMPLES

The present invention will be described in more detail through examples.The following examples are for illustrative purposes only and it will beapparent to those skilled in the art not that the scope of thisinvention is not limited by the examples.

Example 1 Sensory Test

1) Selection of Vehicle Model

Odor was sampled from the air conditioner of a vehicle model A.

2) Sensory Test Method

i) Three out of the four air conditioner exhausts were sealedhermetically.

ii) For sensory test and gas sampling, the exhaust at the left side ofthe driver seat was sealed hermetically using a glass tube and a vinylbag.

iii) The air conditioner was operated at level 2 under internalventilation condition.

iv) The panelist was asked to smell the sample in the glass tube andevaluate the intensity and type of odor.

Table 1 describes the level of odor according to intensity which wasused as the standard of sensory test and evaluation after preparation ofthe mixtures for reproducing the detected odor in Examples 3 and 4.

TABLE 1 Odor intensity Level of odor 5 Irritating and intense odor 4Strong odor 3 Weak but easily perceived odor 2 Perceived but slight odor1 Almost unperceived odor 0 No odor

Example 2 Sampling Procedure

1) Selection of Vehicle Model

Sample was taken from the same vehicle as in Example 1.

2) Sensory Test Method

i) Three out of the four air conditioner exhausts were sealedhermetically.

ii) The exhaust at the left side of the driver seat was sealedhermetically using a glass tube and a vinyl bag.

iii) The opening of a 10-L PE sample bag was connected to the glasstube.

iv) The air conditioner was operated at level 2 under internalventilation condition and gas sample was taken.

Example 3 Sample Analysis

The sample taken in Example 2 was analyzed by absorptionspectrophotometry, headspace-gas chromatography with flame ionizationdetector (HS-GC/FID), gas chromatography with flame photometric detector(GC/FPD), high-pressure liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detector(HPLC/UV), gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MSD) andheadspace-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (HS-GC/MS).

Table 2 shows the result of detecting compounds contributing tooffensive odor from the sample.

TABLE 2 Components Detection limit (ppm) Concentration (ppm) Ammonia0.150 0.120 Acetaldehyde 0.0015 0.01267 Propionaldehyde 0.0010 0.00284Butyraldehyde 0.00067 0.00383 Isovaleraldehyde 0.0001 0.00128Valeraldehyde 0.00041 0.00168 Hydrogen sulfide 0.00041 0.00Methylmercaptan 0.00007 0.00 Dimethyl sulfide 0.0030 0.00030 Dimethyldisulfide 0.0022 0.00 Triethylamine 0.000032 0.00002 Toluene 0.3300.09440 m,p-Xylene 0.041 0.03744 o-Xylene 0.380 0.02349 Styrene 0.0350.00 Methyl ethyl ketone 0.440 0.01216 Methyl isobutyl ketone 0.0170.00897 Butyl acetate 0.016 0.00 Propionic acid 0.0057 0.00004 n-Butyricacid 0.00019 0.00004 n-Valeric acid 0.000037 0.00 Isovaleric acid0.000078 0.00 Isobutyl alcohol 0.0260 0.00479

10 L of sample was taken from the vehicle model A under the condition ofblower level 2+air conditioner off-on-off.

Example 4 Preparation of Malodor Composition

A malodor composition was prepared by mixing ammonia, acetaldehyde,propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde, isovaleraldehyde, n-valeraldehyde,dimethyl sulfide, toluene, m-xylene, o-xylene, methyl ethyl ketone,methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyric acid and isobutyl alcohol according tothe compositions described in Table 3.

TABLE 3 Detection Bag Injection limit Conc. volume volume Components(ppm) M.W. Density (ppm) (L) (mL) Ammonia 0.150 17.03 0.70 0.120 10.03.91 Acetaldehyde 0.0015 44.00 0.79 0.0127 10.0 0.95 Propionaldehyde0.0010 58.08 0.81 0.0028 10.0 0.27 Butyraldehyde 0.00067 72.00 0.800.0038 10.0 0.46 Isovaleraldehyde 0.0001 86.13 0.80 0.0013 10.0 0.18n-Valeraldehyde 0.00041 86.13 0.81 0.0017 10.0 0.24 Dimethyl sulfide0.0030 62.00 0.85 0.0003 10.0 0.03 Toluene 0.330 92.14 0.87 0.0944 10.013.47 m-Xylene 0.0041 106.17 0.87 0.0374 10.0 6.14 o-Xylene 0.380 106.170.87 0.0235 10.0 3.84 Methyl ethyl ketone 0.440 72.11 0.81 0.0122 10.01.46 Methyl isobutyl 0.017 100.16 0.80 0.0090 10.0 1.50 ketone n-Butyricacid 0.00019 88.12 0.96 0.000041 10.0 0.01 Isobutyl alcohol 0.0260 74.120.80 0.0048 10.0 0.59

The odor of the samples obtained from the air conditioner of the vehiclemodel A was malodor of intensity 3-4, as described in Table 4.

The odor of the malodor composition prepared from a combination of theaforementioned components was also malodor of intensity 3-4, similar tothat from the air conditioner.

TABLE 4 Odor from vehicle air Intensity 3-4 conditioner CharacteristicStink smell malodor composition Intensity 3-4 prepared from detectedCharacteristic Stink smell compounds Causative substance HydrocarbonsNote Intensity Similar Reproducibility Reproducible

The features and advantages of the present disclosure may be summarizedas follows.

(i) Through the analysis method of the present invention, the compoundscontributing to the malodor from an air conditioner may be identifiedand quantified.

(ii) The malodor may be reproduced from a combination of the compoundsidentified by the analysis method of the present invention.

(iii) The reproduced malodor may provide significant data required fordevelopment of an apparatus and a method for removing specific odor.

The present invention has been described in detail with reference toexemplary embodiments thereof. However, it will be appreciated by thoseskilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made inthese embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit ofthe invention, the scope of which is defined in the accompanying claimsand their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A detected malodor composition from an airconditioner, consisting of: 0.015-2 ppm of ammonia; 0.0015-0.1 ppm ofacetaldehyde; 0.0010-0.1 ppm of propionaldehyde; 0.00067-0.03 ppm ofbutyraldehyde; 0.0001-0.006 ppm of isovaleraldehyde; 0.00041-0.02 ppm ofn-valeraldehyde; 0.0041-2.7 ppm of m-xylene; 0.02-2.9 ppm of o-xylene;0.009-3 ppm of methyl isobutyl ketone; and 0.004-4 ppm of isobutylalcohol.
 2. A method for analyzing compounds contributing to malodorfrom an air conditioner, comprising: collecting a gas emitted from anair conditioner; and analyzing the components of the gas, wherein thecomponents analyzed in the gas and that contribute to the malodorconsist of: 0.15-2 ppm of ammonia; 0.0015-0.1 ppm of acetaldehyde;0.0010-0.1 ppm of propionaldehyde; 0.00067-0.03 ppm of butyraldehyde;0.0001-0.006 ppm of isovaleraldehyde; 0.00041-0.02 ppm ofn-valeraldehyde; 0.0041-2.7 ppm of m-xylene; 0.02-2.9 ppm of o-xylene;0.009-3 ppm of methyl isobutyl ketone; and 0.004-4 ppm of isobutylalcohol.
 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the air conditioneris a vehicle air conditioner.
 4. The method according to claim 3,wherein the vehicle is selected from hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles,combustion, and fuel cell vehicles.
 5. The method according to claim 2,wherein the concentration of the ammonia, acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde,butyraldehyde, isovaleraldehyde, n-valeraldehyde, m-xylene, o-xylene,methyl isobutyl ketone and isobutyl alcohol is measured.
 6. The methodaccording to claim 2, wherein the analysis of the components isperformed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS), gaschromatography with atomic emission detector (GC/AED), gaschromatography/flame ionization detection/olfactometry(GC/FID/olfactometry) or high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).7. The method for preparing a detected malodor composition from an airconditioner, comprising mixing compounds consisting of: 0.015-2 ppm ofammonia; 0.0015-0.1 ppm of acetaldehyde; 0.0010-0.1 ppm ofpropionaldehyde; 0.00067-0.03 ppm of butyraldehyde; 0.0001-0.006 ppm ofisovaleraldehyde; 0.00041-0.02 ppm of n-valeraldehyde; 0.0041-2.7 ppm ofm-xylene; 0.02-2.9 ppm of o-xylene; 0.009-3 ppm of methyl isobutylketone; and 0.004-4 ppm of isobutyl alcohol.
 8. The method according toclaim 7, wherein the air conditioner is used for hybrid vehicles,electric vehicles, combustion, or fuel cell vehicles.